Trump’s Immigration Policies Remain Popular: Polls
Over the weekend, protests and riots targeting ICE and law enforcement in Los Angeles made national news as rioters carrying Mexican flags burned cars and assaulted officers. These riots are likely to be viewed negatively by the American public, not only because of the violence, but also because polls show Americans generally agree with the president on immigration.
A CBS News poll examined Trump’s approval on immigration. The poll, conducted from June 4-6, found that 54% approved of the administration’s program to deport illegal immigrants, while 46% disapproved. One contributing factor was that a plurality, 42%, believed the deportations made people in the U.S. safer, while only 30% said they made people less safe. Additionally, 53% said they believed the Trump administration was prioritizing the deportation of dangerous criminals, while 47% said it was not.
Support for the deportation program largely depended on how respondents viewed its scope. Among those who believed Trump was deporting fewer or about as many immigrants as expected, 66% approved. However, among those who believed the administration was deporting more people than expected, only 42% approved.
Some aspects of the plan were less popular. Sixty-three percent said noncitizens should receive a court hearing before being deported, while only 37% said they should be deported without one.
The Trump administration has argued against holding court hearings for every deportation, saying it would take hundreds of years to conduct the millions of trials required. Trump administration officials contend that they have the legal authority to suspend certain due process protections for illegal immigration under a constitutional clause stating: “The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it.” The administration has argued that mass immigration constitutes an invasion, justifying suspension of habeas corpus, the right not to be imprisoned indefinitely without due process, for deportation cases.
Trump’s immigration policy is generally more popular than his other policies. The CBS poll also asked about job approval overall, with 45% approving and 55% disapproving. On immigration, 50% approved, while on the economy, only 42% approved. This pattern is reflected in the RCP Average, where Trump holds a net -2.1 approval rating overall, but a +4.5 approval rating on immigration.
Support for his immigration policies has remained steady since the election. In a poll conducted Oct. 19-22, 54% also said they supported arresting and deporting millions of illegal immigrants, while only 34% were opposed. Among Hispanic respondents, 42% approved and 41% disapproved. Compared to Kamala Harris, immigration was one of Trump’s strongest issues: 49% said they believed Trump would handle immigration better, while only 36% said the same of Harris.
Trump Job Approval Three polls released over the weekend measured Trump’s job approval: Rasmussen had him at +3, CBS at -10, and RMG Research at +5. The RCP Average currently shows slightly negative net approval, at -2.1.
Texas Republican Senate Primary Despite being the incumbent, the last three polls out of Texas show Republican Sen. John Cornyn trailing Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. The latest poll from Up One Insights shows Paxton leading by 22 points, 50% to 28%, in the primary.
Direction of the Country Although Americans are historically pessimistic about the country’s direction, the latest poll from Quantus Insights suggests a more optimistic outlook than usual, with 45% believing the U.S. is headed in the right direction, while 51% say it’s on the wrong track. By contrast, on June 10, 2024, just 25.8% said the country was on the right track, and 64.8% said it was on the wrong track, in the RCP Average.
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